What The New Obesity Study Didn’t Tell You

In the Park Avenue salons where the rich and thin gather here in New York City, one of their favorite targets are the obese. People who are overweight. Sometimes people carrying just a few extra pounds.

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It’s an attitude I’ve heard a lot and am not fond of. Because not everyone can control their weight. And, despite the whispers and jokes, extra pounds is not a sign of laziness or ineptitude.

Sure, I’d like to see all of us achieve our ideal weight. And, for the chronic diseases sometimes associated with heaviness to go away – diabetes, high blood pressure, and the like. But what I see is a bias, a chauvinism, a prejudiced attitude toward people who are overweight – and that is masquerading as a desire to help the little people.